


Blame It on Sleep Deprivation

by jstabe



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-17
Updated: 2019-03-17
Packaged: 2019-11-23 05:45:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,337
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18147863
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jstabe/pseuds/jstabe
Summary: He’d already grabbed a bottle of water out of the fridge before he noticed the note stuck to it, Clint’s messy scrawl in green ink on orange paper.Boy it's hot in here. Oh wait, that’s just you.Bucky snorted, stuck the note to the fridge with a magnet.





	Blame It on Sleep Deprivation

**Author's Note:**

> Written for One Million Words Slow Sated Sunday prompt - Love notes. Little notes of love, gratitude or naughty suggestions.

Early morning light was just spilling onto the bed when Bucky woke. He stretched, trying to place what had woken him. Frowning, he blinked sleep from his eyes and didn’t bother searching for his phone. 

“Hey, J.A.R.V.I.S? What time is it?” 

“Good morning, Sergeant Barnes. It is currently half past six.” 

Bucky grunted in reply, irritation stirring. He’d intended to wait up for Clint; the archer had been off on a rebuilding S.H.I.E.L.D. mission with Steve and had been gone for almost a week. 

“I thought Clint was due back last night.” 

“Agent Barton arrived home shortly before midnight. As you were sleeping soundly, he chose not to wake you.” 

That sounded like Clint. It hadn’t been that long since Bucky had started sleeping an entire night without nightmares. Still, he'd have rather have had the time with Clint. Scowling, Bucky rolled over in bed and threw the covers back. There was no sense brooding about it after the fact. As he sat up, he heard a crinkling and looked down to find a crumpled piece of paper under his thigh. He smoothed it out, one brow rising at the doodles of arrows and targets. Bulls-eyes, every one, of course. A smile tugged at Bucky’s lips. 

Feeling slightly less annoyed, he set the paper on the nightstand and went to shower. In the bathroom, he took a piss and washed his hands, brushed his teeth. He got the water started, didn’t bother waiting for it to heat up completely before he stepped into the tub. He froze, one foot in and a hand on the curtain as he noticed writing on the tile. It was done in all different colors and it took Bucky a second to read it since it was stretched all along the walls. 

_Singing in the shower is all fun and games until you get shampoo in your mouth. Then it becomes a soap opera._

The sharp bark of laughter was loud in the enclosed space, but Bucky didn’t care. He was still grinning as he stepped completely into the tub. Rainbow colored water swirled around his feet as the washable chalk dripped off the tile, and he smiled every time he looked down. 

*** 

Bucky supposed he shouldn’t have been surprised to find notes in his kitchen as well. He’d already grabbed a bottle of water out of the fridge before he noticed the note stuck to it, Clint’s messy scrawl in green ink on orange paper. 

_Boy it's hot in here. Oh wait, that’s just you._

Bucky snorted, stuck the note to the fridge with a magnet then used the water to fill the fancy one cup coffee maker Stark insisted was a necessity. Bucky wasn’t dependent on the caffeine for a pick-me-up anymore, but he still loved the taste. As his coffee brewed, he typed out a text to Clint, asking him to come and have breakfast if he was awake. 

Sipping from his mug, he went back to the fridge for eggs, damn near dropped the carton when he opened the lid to find the message scrawled on it. 

_How do monsters like their eggs?_

_Terri-fried!_

Bemused, Bucky took the eggs to the counter. He could take a hint. As he set about frying eggs, a thought occurred to him. 

“Hey, J.A.R.V.I.S? How long was Clint here last night?” 

There was a long pause before the AI finally answered. “Agent Barton is still here, Sergeant.” 

“Wait, what?” 

Bucky looked around as if he’d somehow missed Clint in his kitchen or living room. Considering his place had an open floor plan, that was pretty ridiculous. 

“Agent Barton has asked me to tell you that he is fine, just overtired and hungry.” 

Nodding absently, Bucky threw bread into the toaster, reached for a banana while he waited. His fingers brushed paper, and he pulled the note out, already smiling. 

_I love you bunches!_

“How sleep deprived is he,” Bucky asked, laughing. 

“I am afraid I do not know the answer to that, Sergeant Barnes, but Agent Barton has been awake since he returned last night.” 

That dimmed the smile a bit, but Bucky got it. Once you got keyed up, it could be hard to come down. And he knew how important this was to Steve. Clint would want to be good backup for his Captain. Not to mention that S.H.I.E.L.D. meant a lot to him. 

He plated breakfast, stuck it in the warmer while he made himself a fresh cup of coffee. Thought about making one for Clint, but that wouldn’t help with the whole sleeping thing. He opened the cupboard to get one of the K-cups of cocoa and saw the note on the box. On the front of the little card was a drawing of a cup of cocoa with heart-shaped marshmallows. Clint had written under the cup - _We’re like cocoa and marshmallows._

Curious, Bucky flipped open the card and nearly choked. 

_You’re hot and I wanna be on top of you_

“You’re killing me, Barton,” Bucky mumbled under his breath. 

He tossed the card on the counter, focused on finishing up breakfast. When everything was ready, he dug a tray out from the back of the pantry and loaded it up. He made his way to the balcony, the only conceivable place to find his archer. He grinned when he saw the huddled shape sprawled on the lounger, covered by a heavy blanket from the linen closet. Messy blond hair poked its way out of the blanket at the sound of the door and sleepy eyes met his. Clint’s smile was slow and so beautiful it made Bucky ache. He set the tray on a small table and bent to brush a kiss across Clint’s mouth. 

“Hey sweetheart.” 

Clint’s eyes softened, his cheeks going slightly pink the way they always did when Bucky called him something sweet. He lifted a corner of the blanket, scooting over to make room for Bucky. Bucky slid in and tugged Clint close. 

“You should have woken me up.” 

“Nah,” Clint’s voice was rough from lack of sleep, but he was smiling. “No sense in both of us being sleep deprived when it’s not necessary. Besides, I entertained myself.” 

“I saw that,” Bucky laughed. “It was nice. Unexpected, but I liked it.” 

“Yeah?” Clint scratched the back of his neck, looking embarrassed but pleased. “Couldn’t sleep and I was thinking about you so.” 

They settled in and Bucky tugged the tray close. Clint didn’t eat much but seemed content to be curled against Bucky’s side and taking bites as Bucky fed him. When he handed the mug of cocoa to Clint, he got a smirk. Bucky rolled his eyes. 

“Yeah, I got your message. You’re hot too. And you can be on top of me whenever you want.” Clint started to speak, and Bucky leaned in to kiss him. “But not until you sleep.” 

“You’re the worst,” Clint grumbled. 

“I know,” Bucky agreed happily. Somebody in this relationship had to be the responsible one. 

After they’d finished eating and the dishes had been stacked on the tray, Clint pushed Bucky to recline against the lounger before sprawling over him. He gave a contented sigh when Bucky began stroking a hand along his spine. 

“You can’t sleep out here,” Bucky chided softly. 

“Don’t want to sleep. It’ll fuck up me sleeping tonight. Just need a nap.” Clint yawned, then blinked up at Bucky. “You don’t have to stay. I mean, maybe until I’m asleep, but...” 

Bucky leaned down for a kiss, stopping the flow of words. “I’m not going anywhere. I’ve got books on my phone. I’ll be fine.” 

Clint grinned, stole another kiss, then settled over Bucky. He was out before Bucky had finished situating the blanket around them. Bucky kissed his temple, settled back to watch the city wake up below them, content to be exactly where he was in this moment.


End file.
